Earlier this year, the Dodger family lost 2 Hall of Famers, Tommy Lasorda, and Don Sutton. To be truthful, I never was a huge Sutton fan. And in all the times over the years that I saw him pitch, no one performance stands out. He never threw a no-hitter, but he had 5 one-hitters and 10 two-hitters. He had 58 shutouts over his career. He never finished higher than 3rd in the Cy Young vote, never led the league in wins. He had one ERA title, and for those fond of newer stats, he led the league in WHIP 4 times. He also led in K to BB ratio 3 times. He won 20 games exactly once.
One thing he was though, was consistent. For 18 straight years from 1966, his rookie season, until 1983 he won 10 or more every year. He was an innings-eater as they say, and he was rarely injured, so he did not miss starts. After he missed winning in double-figure in 83, he came back and won 10 or more 5 more times. In his last season, 1988, he only pitched in 17 games in his return to the Dodgers winning 3 and losing 6.
No longer the innings horse he once was, the Dodgers released him in August with Fred Claire saying, they needed someone who would be able to go more than 5 or 6 innings. They would love him in this era. Donald Howard Sutton was born in Clio, Alabama on April 2nd, 1945 – the same day as his future teammate, Reggie Smith. Clio is a small town in Barbour County. His father was a sharecropper and Don was born in a tarpaper shack. His dad, Howard, instilled in him a strong work ethic and Sutton stuck to that his whole life.
They moved to Molino, Florida, just north of Pensacola, as his dad looked for work in the construction industry. Sutton attended J.M. Tate High school where he played baseball, basketball, and football. He led his team to the small school state finals two years in a row, winning in 1962, and losing 2-1 the next. He graduated in 1963 being selected the Most Likely to Succeed. He was also honored with all county, all-conference, and all-state for both of his seasons. He wanted to go to the University of Florida, but the coach, Dave Fuller, was not interested. So he went to Gulf Coast Community College for a year, and then to Whittier College for a year.
After a good summer season, he was signed as an amateur free agent by the Dodgers. He spent 1965 first with Santa Barbara, a single A team, going 8-1 with a 1.50 ERA and 8 complete games, then he went to Albuquerque, their AA team, and was 15-6 with a 2.78 ERA and 16 complete games. In 1966 he joined the Dodgers rotation at the age of 21 as the 4th starter behind Koufax, Drysdale, and Claude Osteen. He went 12-12 with an ERA of 2.99 and struck out 209 batters, the highest total for a rookie since 1951.
He did not pitch in the World Series, Alston passed him over with the Dodgers down 0-3, in favor of Big D, who was pitted against another future Hall of Famer, rookie, Jim Palmer. Sutton’s MLB debut came on April 14, 1966… the same day that future 300 game-winner and Hall of Famer, Greg Maddux was born. Over the next 3 seasons, he was under .500, winning in double figures each year.
His combined record from1967 through 1969, 39-48. 69 to 78 he was over the .500 mark until he went 12-15 in 1979. His post-season record as a Dodger is 5-3, one win better than Koufax and his post-season ERA with them was almost 4. He had 3 complete games in the postseason for the Dodgers. His best post-season performances came in 1974 when he went 2-0 against the Pirates, and had LA’s only win against the A’s.
Sutton went to the All-Star game 4 times and in 1976 he had his only 20 win season going 21-10. He was the starting pitcher and MVP of the 1977 All-Star game at Yankee Stadium. And he went 1-0 against the Yanks in his team’s losing effort in the World Series. He was 14-8 that year. In 1978, in August, he got media attention for his altercation with a teammate, Steve Garvey. Sutton had criticized all the media attention given to Steve Garvey, saying that Reggie Smith was really the team’s best player. Garvey confronted him before a game with the Mets, and they came to blows and had to be separated by teammates and team officials.
The team got to the Series again, but Sutton was rocked for 14 runs in 17 post-season innings. He went 12-15 in 1979, and the following year, 1980, he went 13-5 and earned his only ERA award. That winter, he became a free agent and left LA to sign with the Houston Astros. 1981 was a strike year, so his innings total was lower than it had been, he won 11 and lost 9, but missed the playoffs against the Dodgers because of a patellar fracture suffered in a loss to the Dodgers on October 2nd.
In 1982 he expressed a desire to return to the West coast to play because he wanted to be close to his family. Houston instead traded him to the Brewers for Kevin Bass, Mike Madden, and Frank DiPino. The trade was heavily criticized by Astros player Ray Knight. He felt a pitcher like Sutton should have brought a bigger name player. Sutton went 4-1 with the Brewers and beat the Angels in a playoff game. In the series with the Cardinals, Sutton got knocked around for 11 runs, 9 earned in two games.
In 1983 he won only 8 games, the first time in his career he had not won at least 10. In 1984 he rebounded and won 14. After the season, he was traded to the Oakland A’s for Ray Burris. But he was unsure he would report. He still wanted to be close to his family in Southern California. Eventually, he reported 12 days late. He started the year 13-8 and was traded again, this time to the Angels for a couple of minor leaguers. One reason Sutton reported to the A’s, he was 20 wins shy of 300.
He went 2-2 with the Angels and did not have a decision in the playoff loss to Boston in 2 games. In 1986, he was 5 wins shy of 300. He struggled to begin the year and finally won # 300 on June 18th against the Rangers with a 3 hit one-run performance and a complete game. He won 10 more for the Angels, finishing at 15-11. In 1987, he was 11-11 at the age of 42 and finished without pitching 200 innings for the first time since the strike year of 1981.
The Angels released him, and the Dodgers signed him to a free agent contract bringing their all-time wins leader home. Sutton was not very good in 88. He went 3-6 with LA, In August, he had met with Astros GM, Bill Wood to discuss an Assistant GM position with the Astros that was vacant. Fred Claire told Sutton he had violated team rules talking with another team while under contract with the Dodgers.
Sutton said he had met Wood at a game and only advised him of his interest and willingness to discuss it later. No matter, the bond was broken and Sutton was released on August 10th with Claire saying they needed someone who could pitch longer than 5 or 6 innings as I stated earlier. Sutton still holds the record for the most at-bats without a Homerun, 1,354, and he also holds this record: Seven times he pitched 9 scoreless innings and got a no-decision.
He was already the team leader in wins with 230 when he left for free agency, and he won an additional 95 before he came back His record as a Dodger, 233-184. Overall record, 324-256. He is also the team’s career leader in strikeouts, 2,696. A mark that should be eclipsed by Kershaw sometime this season. He is only 43 away. Sutton soon went into broadcasting, working for the Dodgers on the Z channel and the Braves on TBS.
He went full-time with the Braves in 1990 and stayed there until 2006. In 2007 and 8 he worked for the Nationals, but when a spot on the Braves radio team opened up, he negotiated his release and went back to work for the Braves. Sutton stayed with the Braves through 2018 but missed the 2019 season because of a broken leg.
In 1998 he was the only player selected to the Hall garnering a little over 81 % of the vote. Sutton was inducted into the Braves Hall of Fame for his broadcast work, joining only Ernie Johnson, Skip Caray, and Peter Van Wieren in the hall. His son Daron, who was recently let go by the Angels, also broadcasted for the Brewers and D-Backs, Sutton passed away on January 19, 2021, in Ranch Mirage California.
He is survived by his wife, Mary, son Daron, and his daughters, Jackie and Staci. He had been in a long fight with kidney cancer. The Dodgers are honoring both Sutton and Lasorda by wearing their uniform numbers on the sleeve of their jerseys. This is the second time I remember them doing that, In 1993 during the season, they lost Drysdale and Campy.
If nothing else, Sutton was a true workhorse. He made almost every start every year. But he never led the league in innings pitched. He averaged 235 over a 162 game season for 23 years. Personally, he was never a favorite of mine. I just thought he was good, but not great. His place in the Hall to me was simply because of longevity. But over the long run, I began to appreciate the fact that Sutton was out there every time he was called on. And although he never won more than 20 once, his consistency and his reliability cannot be denied.
Sutton to me was not a very likable fellow. I actually thought he was kind of smug. But that was my personal view. He also incurred the wrath of teammate John Candelaria. He informed the police that Candelaria was driving home intoxicated, which led to the Candy Man getting a DUI. Sutton said he did it for Candelaria’s well-being. Candelaria insisted it was because he wanted to secure his spot in Angels rotation. Whatever my personal views, Sutton was as solid as they come night in and night out.
Update from Dodger Chatter
The Great Lakes Loons (39-31) made history against the Lake County Captains (37-33) Friday night, throwing their first no-hitter since the team’s inaugural 2007 season with a 14-0 drubbing at Classic Park. A combined effort from starter Clayton Beeter and relievers Bobby Miller, Jake Cantleberry and Cameron Gibbens held the Captains both scoreless and hitless while walking three batters and striking out 13. Carson Taylor caught all nine innings and contributed a ninth-inning grand slam to punctuate a six-run frame with the 100th home run hit this season for Great Lakes.
No one in a grey uniform that read Great Lakes across the chest was sitting with two outs in the top of the ninth, and that included the 6’7” Gibbens, who took an opportunity to wipe the sweat from his brow. Gibbens, 26, stared into the strike zone of 20-year-old Jose Tena, a lefty-hitting middle infielder for Lake County. Loons first-baseman Justin Yurchak held Will Brennan aboard at first, who delayed Friday’s result a few batters longer with a one-out walk. After a brief pause, the 1-and-1 pitch to Tena was popped up, causing Yurchak to drift to his left into foul territory, flailing his hands and eyeing the ball, along with the opportunity to finalize history, into his glove.
“It was the first one I had ever been a part of, it was a very special night, and I couldn’t have been happier for the guys out there,” Loons manager Austin Chubb said. “Obviously, offensively, a huge night, but a great job by everyone on defense as well.”
Beeter: 2.0 IP, 0 hit, 0 run, 1 BB, 3 K
Miller (W): 5.0 IP, 0 hit, 0 run, 1 BB, 7 K
Cantleberry: 1.0 IP, 0 hit, 0 run, 0 BB, 1 K
Gibbens: 1.0 IP, 0 hit, 0 run, 1 BB, 2 K
I think a lot of us did not appreciate Don Sutton at the time, but looking back he was a true Hall-of-Famer. RIP Don!
Great Job, Michael.
Another horrible loss and Bellinger finally gets untracked only to have to leave the game with hamstring tightness.
The bullpen collectively looked like crap.
Bazooka can throw but not pitch. Nelson and Knebel can not come back soon enough. I like the arms the Dodgers have but control and the ability to pitch is lacking. The light at the end of the tunnel may be a train.
This is a temporary “blip” but with all the injuries: Betts, Clayton, Knebel, Seager, Nelson, Muncy gone, and now Bellinger hurt again, you have to wonder if the Baseball Gods are punishing the Dodgers for going over the Luxury Cap by signing Trevor Bauer. Speaking of Bauer. This is from the NY Post:
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer appeared in court Friday to fight the extension of a protective order sought by a woman who says he choked her to the point where she lost consciousness and punched her during two sexual encounters earlier this year.
Attorneys for Bauer and for the woman revealed during a short court session that they intend to call several witnesses, including Bauer, and argue over the order in what amounts to a trial that is expected to last three days.
Judge Dianna Gould-Saltman delayed the beginning of that hearing until Aug. 2 because Bauer’s attorney, Shawn Holley, said she was given the woman’s witness list late and had insufficient time to prepare.
“We came here ready, but ready on what had been presented to us,” Holley said in court.
Gould-Saltman ruled that Bauer will need to take the stand and must decline to answer possibly incriminating questions one at a time as is standard in civil proceedings like this one. She declined Holley’s request to let him avoid testifying altogether. Holley said she was strongly advising Bauer against saying anything.
Thank you Mark. I really appreciate it. If they had those guys, then Nunez, Vesia, and most likely Graterol would not be on the roster. I have to believe the biggest blow is the loss of Mookie. Had he been healthy enough to hit, I think Roberts missed a huge chance to erase the last couple of days with 1 out and the bases loaded and Neuse coming up. Neuse was out of the game the next half inning anyway being replaced by Barnes. To have a player on the bench and not be able to use him is just bad management. Especially with Muncy home with the arrival of his new daughter. By the way, congrats to the Muncy’s.
I did not watch the end. Only through 7. Don’t understand at all why they did not use Kelly. Instead we throw our newbies out there. It just looks like a revolving door at the bottom of our bullpen week after week. And I am getting done with Bazooka, love the energy, love the attitude, but as noted he really just cannot pitch. All he can do is throw really hard.
Was unsurprised, but shaking my head this AM when I checked the box score.
And what is with all this “hamstring tightness” epidemic this year. Are training staffs making sure players are properly stretched out? That and obliques seem to be the injurie de jour these days.
Kelly reportedly has a sore arm.
It is reported that he might be available tomorrow. But that is what Doc is reported to have said, so take that for what it is worth.
Bear quisiera hacerle una pregunta, sabe usted si la lesión de Mookie es reciente o la viene arrastrando de tiempo atrás ? de antemano gracias.
I will be busy most of today and tomorrow. My daughter wanted to landscape my new deck and backyard, so she came down last weekend and is here again this weekend. I am helping here with the landscaping although she is a beast.
Here’s from last week (before):
During:
After:
With Lights:
Looks good Mark, nice house.
Update above by DC!
Totally cool, And that Gibbens dude is HUGE! MLB.com has predictions on where the top trade targets will land. They think Story will wind up with the A’s. Fine with me, get him out of the league. He did us in tonight. Cron they predict will end up with the Padres. The only top name they predict will end up in LA is Kimbrel, which again is fine with me. We need another option at the end of games.
Don Sutton. You know what I miss about guys like him? 178 complete games. Mister we could use a guy like Donald Sutton again.
Nostalgia.
I’ve done the math. We aren’t eliminated yet, but at this 1-5 pace we should be some time in August.
wtf?
And there are no replacement players that are going to help.
It’s a curse…………..
It’s Trevor Bauer.
We need someone who is experienced dealing with curses…..
Mark. Do your thing man.
Yep, we need to send someone to Haiti to find someone deeply experienced in removing curses for sure.
If you are caucasian, right about now is a really bad time to go to Haiti.
Personally for me, ANY TIME is a bad time to go to Haiti. Spent a little time on the other side of the island in the DR & they pretty much feel the same way.
cheers
Roberts says Bellinger will not be in the lineup tonight, which starts an hour earlier at 6:10 PST.
Put Mookie on the IL, bring up Ruiz and have Barnes play second base.
Ok, I asked Jeff about the trade idea that would bring Bryant, Zach Davies and Kimbrel to the Dodgers but no feedback yet. Mark is busy landscaping, Bear is waxing nostalgic so I’ll put it to the group:
https://www.truebluela.com/2021/7/23/22590625/los-angeles-dodgers-chicago-cubs-trade-deadline-kris-bryant-craig-kimbrel-zach-davies
Just prospects, not all of them but a few of our prized possessions. This squad needs a steroid injection and we’ve got only a few days to decide how to go about it. Is this not our year? Do we bluff, go all in or fold? Not my money so I say we go all in.
I talked about it at the end of the last stream. I would do it as long as Ruiz was not in the deal.
I know I posted it because I saw it land.
What happened?
Spam filters malfunctioning.
Figured as much. Thanks
Since management never gives us anything definitive about injuries there is really no way to know when Mookie and Seager will return and if they’ll ever be at full strength for the remainder of the season. How effective will Kershaw be when he returns? How about Nelson and Knebel? Will Gonsolin ever be back to what we saw at the beginning of last year?
This is the way Bellinger’s hammy was last time it happened. Day to day turned out to be a lot of days. When Lux comes back, will he be of any help? Albert has hit a lot of grounders lately. Is it just a minor slump or is this the AP we get for the rest of the year?
This team needs so many fixes that AF might have to dismantle the entire farm system to come up with a team that could actually challenge the Pads and Giants the rest of the way and be competitive in the playoffs.
It seems to me that they must be having long talks in the front office as to whether it even pays to add big pieces (Kimbrel, Scherzer, Berrios, Bryant, etc.) at the cost of our best prospects because it’s possible that without adding lots of those All Star types, it won’t make any difference.
Or maybe Andrew finds a couple of really good pieces and we get most of our regulars back healthy and productive. Stay tuned.
Totally agree STB, after last night there’s 63 games left and with none of the A team coming anytime soon and still losing more players to injury they may as well stand pat at the deadline and go with what we got. The last 4-5 games the amount of runs given up in 7th inning on is putrid. Not a Roberts fan at all, he loses more close games than he wins!
I’ll try it again.
https://www.truebluela.com/2021/7/23/22590625/los-angeles-dodgers-chicago-cubs-trade-deadline-kris-bryant-craig-kimbrel-zach-davies
And if we have to take Heyward so what? He’s a better option than McKinney.
Yeah sure, that’ll happen. Might was well add Baez and Rizzo to that deal. I wonder if Blake Harris posts here under another name. Wouldn’t it make more sense to trade Bryant and Kimbrel in separate deals to maximize returns?
I hate reading trade proposals. They’re always one sided and they never come anywhere close to what is proposed when a player in ultimately traded. This one in particular is especially stupid. Trade a catcher to a team that doesn’t need a catcher and trade one of their biggest stars even though “The Dodgers don’t have an immediate need for Bryant”. What kind of BS trade proposal is this?
I have a better idea. Bring a suitcase full of cash to Manfred to get Bauer back and make a trade for a closer. Geesh!
“I hate reading”
Then stop.
That was a trade for a closer. Geesh! Wake up on the wrong side of cot this morning Bull Pen?
Yes
WTF? Fire the training staff and hire a shaman! I’ve never seen this many injuries to a team before. They are piling up more than accusations at Bauer’s court hearing.
Just as Bellinger is getting ready to serve up a big plate of crow, the menu changes to green eggs and hammy.
How the F does Seager go from being activated on Tuesday to still being on the IL on Saturday?
How the F does Mookie go from day to day to week to week?
How the F does Kelly come up with sore arm?
Why the F did Doc pull Price at just 74 pitches?
If the Dodgers were a rock band, they would be George Thorogood and the Destroyers because they’re “Bad to the Bone”, “Born Under a Bad Sign” and I could sure use “One Bourbon, One Scotch and one Beer” right about now.
I’d like to propose a trade. Kenley, Sherfy, Nunez, Barnes, Nuese, McKinney to the IL for Mookie, Seager, Belli, Kershaw, Knebel, Nelson and Ruiz. Do you think the IL will make that move?
Thanks for that amazing write-up on Bear. I loved Don Sutton. He was one of those guys that just got the job done. Crazy night for the minor leaguers. Ruiz just raised his trade value and those combined no-no’s don’t come around too often.
I think the Baseball Gods are punishing us for shifting too much, always hitting into the shift, using openers and having bullpen games.
Must be the link. I’ve posted it twice and it ain’t here.
I’ll come back after the administrators have had their coffee.
It’s the trade mentioned at True Blue. You can go read it. We get Davies, Bryant and Kimbrel. Costs us a few of our prized prospects. We might have to take Heyward but so what. I’d rather see him than McKinney.
Don’t bother, it was nonsense anyways. I have a better proposal. Send a suitcase full of cash to Manfred’s office for Trevor Bauer and make a trade for a closer.
Yeah. We who don’t hate reading read that already.
You’re link disappeared so I posted again. Just like you did. Duh! Have some coffee.
Have a enema.
I’ll have an enema when you get your brain tumor removed. We who. Did you have to repeat Kindergarten? That would explain the enema comment, and the lack of punctuation.
Now, I understand why you’re impressed with a history degree.
We know reading is not your strength, but sometimes you embarrass yourself.
Read this:
https://history.humboldt.edu/famous-history-majors
Nice try, I think I read a hell of a lot more that you do and I’m pretty sure that between the two of us, I’m the one who completed postsecondary education…
In 1940, Kennedy graduated cum laude from Harvard with a Bachelor of Arts in government, concentrating on international affairs. That fall, he enrolled at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and audited classes there.
Next person on the list went on to get a Law degree.
Third on the list also received a journalism degree.
4th on the list ultimately received a PdH in history.
5th on the list studied Economics and received a Law degree.
I stopped there because I can see the trend that not one of them stopped after receiving a BA in History because all of them knew they didn’t want to work at Taco Bell for the rest of their lives.
So you admit that a degree in History doesn’t limit anybody. That’s a start.
I figured with Bill O’Reilly on that list you would change your mind.
No Badger, I never said a History degree limits you. I said it doesn’t prove you’re smart, because you said that Doc was pointing to his History degree from UCLA as proof.
I said it’ll qualify you for a job at Taco Bell. So far, the only thing you’ve proven is that you need more than a BA in history to get a respectable job, essentially proving my point. Bill O’Reilly also went back to school to earn a Masters Degree.
This conversation is as ridiculous as “Smart people do stupid things every day”. It reminds of the “Fish Sticks” episode from South Park.
Do you like fish sticks? Do you like to put fish sticks in your mouth? What are you, a gay fish? Even Carlos Mencia gets it and he’s not funny.
No Bull, that’s not what was said.
Let me refresh your memory:
BulldogsandPenguins
July 20, 2021 at 8:18 pm
Doc’s not lying, he’s just stupid.
Badger
July 20, 2021 at 8:20 pm
Hardly. Degree in history from UCLA.
I was merely pointing out the error in your logic. You don’t get into UCLA and graduate if you’re stupid.
Look, trading insults with you has been fun, but I’m done.
Now kids, lets keep it civil. I have no degrees, but I am no dummy either. Both my nephews have their masters and from pretty decent schools too. Ryan from Pepperdine, and Kevin from SDSU. I respect anyone who has a degree from any college in the land, BA or anything else.
I was never one of the people who criticized Andrew Friedman, though I don’t think he is the genius that some think he is. He did a fine job in Tampa Bay, without much money; but after their World Series appearance, they started to fall off. In Los Angeles, he has done some great things, some not nearly as great. Muncy would be his big find. Turner was of course due to Colletti, whom I was not a fan of as a GM, but deserves credit for acquiring him.
I don’t remember all the names, maybe some here will. I think of various Friedman acquisitions such as Ryan Madsen, who was essentially awful in his short time here in 2019. Matt Latos. Picking up Jim Johnson and Luis Avilan from the Braves. Chris Hatcher. Scott Alexander. Tony Watson was okay, I guess, hardly great, is still pitching. Jose Perraza from the Braves, but at least he quickly got rid of him; I had thought that he was going to be our second baseman here for years, and he was not very good at all. I’m sure there are more, these are what I can think of now. They were mostly all “bargain pickups” by Friedman, his specialty,; and many were poor additions. So he is far from a genius at this, though undoubtedly he is the best GM we have had in quite a while.
My point is that now we see the downside, and of course injuries have played a large part in that. But last night. I saw a roster which reminded me of our bleakest years. Neuse has been a terrible offseason pickup. Why did we pick up McKinney? Why did we bring Graterol back up again, when he simply is not a good pitcher right now? When we brought him in, I immediately knew that we were in trouble. We couldn’t use Treinen one more time? Kelly supposedly had some kind of soreness, according to Roberts. Our bullpen, with Jansen’s problems, is now as much a liability as I had suggested early in the season. Couldn’t Friedman have gotten some better relievers in the offseason, as opposed to the collection of injured pitchers and “flyers” he got?
I realize that drafting low for years has hurt us. We seem to have almost nothing in the minors to look forward to, certainly few players that anyone would want in a trade for a major piece. I don’t expect us to do as well as SD and SF at the deadline. Obviously, if we had all our players healthy, it would be a different story, but we do not. We never picked up that key right-handed power hitter that we supposedly needed during the offseason. We certainly never got a closer, so we had to go back to Jansen, and we see how that turned out. Right now, we look almost like a minor league team, and if is frustrating and sad. No matter what kind of lead we have, the bullpen blows it. And Roberts has no gift for using the right guy at the right time, that should be obvious.
I don’t know how we get out of this for the near future. It may be that Friedman had his run here, and that he will bail out, or we will sink down to a lower level with him. Maybe he is a genius who can find a way out. I do not expect Roberts, without a team full of great talent, to maneuver his way to overachievement, as they are doing in SF. Nor are we going to buy our way out of it, as they are doing in SF and will do in NY with Cohen. Right now, we could lose to anyone. Watching this bullpen try to hold a lead is depressing.
Listening to Roberts keep telling us that “he liked that guy in that spot,” “he was comfortable with him there,” is dreary. And having to put up with Kirsten Watson ask absolutely ridiculous questions every night, because the Dodgers ownership decided that it was more important to hire a female of color, independent of any baseball knowledge she might have, is essentially impossible.I sometimes listen to other broadcasts, and they are good and bad, but some actually talk about what the team needs to do, or criticize certain players or managerial moves. Not in Dodgerland, where all they say, is, “They have to work on this or that,” or, “There still are a lot of games to go to turn it around.” The season will be chalked up to all the injuries, and to the Bauer problem. But can we realistically expect Friedman and Roberts to be able to turn it around next season, and after that?
I believe that is a cancer diagnosis for what is a hangnail.
Seek a second opinion.
lol – That was funny.
I disagree. I think William’s post is well thought out. The questions are legitimate.
What are we going to do to deal with this? Do we fold, or do we fight back?
Tratas de entender su frustración Mark, así estamos todos.
Is it possible that chemo WOULD cure said hangnail though?
No, your body parts just fall off.
I never have believed AF was a genius. I was more of the thinking that he had a plan and was going to stick to that plan as well as he could. He has made several deals and signings that I felt were bad. Besides Turner, Seager and Bellinger were from Colletti’s reign. As were several others when he took over. And he did not wait around to begin rearranging the furniture. He has always used the waiver wire and free agents to load up on our so called depth. Some have panned out, most have not. Outside of trading for Betts, his two best moves were getting Taylor from the Mariners, a suggestion of now Ranger manager, Chris Woodward, and Max Muncy, at the suggestion of Farhan Zaidi. That being said, if his roster from spring training was healthy and intact, we would not be talking about the B team being in the majors. Dinged up and out right now, Lux, Bellinger, Betts, Seager, May, Kershaw. In legal limbo, Bauer. And Bauer’s upcoming hearing is not about the charges, it is about the restraining order. His suspension is up on the 7th, and if they want to extend it some more, MLB will need permission from the MLBPA.
I understand the frustration that must be felt after losing several games, and more because of the way they lost, but I have never given up and I will not give up on my beloved LA Dodgers team.
Something tells me that on Tuesday a new streak will start right against SF, there is still time, it just takes a little luck, that a couple of injured return, and a couple of trades, but more than anything, enough to put so much player Triple A on the field and on the mound.
I’m not used to using excuses to justify bad results, but we must be fair, the 25 members of the team that were supposed to start, have hardly ever been together this damn season!
There are still more than 2 months left, and only one series is needed to turn around in the standing, a single weekend is enough to reach first place.
I also sometimes wish I could rip off some players’ heads, but I haven’t sent any asshole clown from SD to the graveyard (not yet) So i wouldn’t do it to anyone from LA
PATIENCE…..
This is not a 100 meters race ….. It’s a marathon!
SF hasn’t had his damn bad streak yet ….. At least not until next Tuesday!
Rosters are now at 26 Jorge, but I get the idea. I have never given up on them. I am frustrated as hell though.
Nice write-up about Don Sutton.
Regarding last night, Oh, what a relief it isn’t. Mark said it all about the bullpen.
Many years ago a long time, highly respected track coach told me that baseball players shouldn’t have hamstring issues, suggesting it had to do with their training and weight programs. Way too many strains, pulls and muscle related issues today in baseball. A couple of former MLB players recently suggested the same on the MLB TV network.
The Dodgers did offer an explanation for Bellinger’s struggles revolving around shoulder dislocation issues in 2020, then the injury at the World Series, followed by surgery, a shortened spring training, then the leg fracture, combined with a slight loop in his swing and the shoulder strength. Finally, he begins to get the swing back and now a hamstring. Not sure he gets back to normal until 2022
Maybe the Dodgers will be able to get out of this “malaise” or maybe not.
Way too many injuries, the loss of May, Bauer’s self created mess, Mookie’s continued issues (remember he said it wasn’t a big deal and he would play against the Giants), Kenley’s meltdowns, Kershaw being out, not enough bench depth, Corey’s slow healing hand, and the curse. Whenever someone starts to get going, another injury strikes. If it’s not one thing, it’s something else. Got to be a curse in there somewhere.
One thing for sure. The Dodgers need to keep Chris Taylor.
Wow. Did Artie Moreno take a beating or what over the dismal state of the Angels minor league system and how players are being treated?
If this spirals downward, Dodgers get swept by the Rockies, fare badly next week, would the Dodgers become sellers? Probably not. But … will they be willing to part with some key prospects if the situation worsens. Guessing Friedman will try to find a solution, no matter what.
I’m thinking I find a way to bring up Keibert Ruiz. They need the bat.
I read about Moreno yesterday. I was surprised how badly his minor league players were being treated and even worse, they do not want to play for his organization. The GM promised to get to the bottom of it. Hopefully something will get done. I would think MLB would investigate this also.
I echo Jorge’s statements. I fully believe in this team and with healthy players, we will be in a position to win the division and go on a deep run again.
As far as trades go, I think our biggest need is a closer. I understand that Doc must feel the best thing to do right now is to come out and lie to the media in order to restore confidence in Kenley, but I think he’s done and even Doc, the ultimate optimist has to have at least some apprehension when he has to make the call to put Kenley in the game.
Starting pitching is thin, but Price looks more than fine and Kersh is gonna be back at some point. It would be a coup to get a front line starter and a closer.
As far as position players go, we just need health. Without health, no blockbusters will fix this team.
Health. Yeah, if we were healthy we wouldn’t be in this mess. We are not, and it’s questionable whether we will be again this year. It looks like it is not a question of when but who, as in who will be next to get hurt.
This feels like karma. What goes around comes around. Maybe it’s the sour of Bauer. Is there time to regroup? Yeah. Sure. Maybe. But not with the current group. We can certainly score double digits now and again but I believe there will also be skid marks left in the driveway a few more times before this weird year is over.
Time to regroup. Go big or go home applies here.
Getting Mookie and Seager back at 100% would be big. Getting Kershaw, Nelson and Knebel back at 100% would be big. A blockbuster would be big.
What’s the play Andrew?
Graterol looked so good last season, especially late and in the playoffs. Got a lot of key outs for out.
What happened over the winter that he gets hit hard almost every other time out ? The velo is still there and he never had much movement to begin with.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grips. He needs to learn grips.
Orel could help with that.
His first problem was that he showed up to camp over weight and really not ready to go. That pushed his throwing regimen back while he got into shape and lost weight. Secondly, he is more of a thrower than a pitcher. He has an electric fastball, and pretty much nothing else. He does have a slider that when he uses it and has control, it can be pretty effective. He was sent to the minors to work on an off speed pitch, and learn to not just try and throw the ball past hitters. He still tries to do that, and thus, he gets hit. They have scouting reports on him now, not so much last season.
I think this is not the time to panic. Last night we had a AAA lineup for the most part. We will be getting Muncy back in a couple of games. Seager and Mookie not far behind. Kersh will be back after his vacation. We have a solid team once we get healthy. I’d like to see Ruiz and Bobby Miller come up for a cup of coffee while be have obvious holes to fill.
It’s Miller time.
Miller is not close to being MLB ready. Ruiz I have on a flight tomorrow. They have some guys with MLB experience that I would consider better options than Graterol and Nunez. I think they ought to at least give Quackenbush a shot. He has been pitching very well for OKC.
After last night’s game all I can say is WOW! AF and his staff have some huge decisions in the next few days. These injuries are getting ridiculous. Cody finally has a productive game and then boom his hammy tightens up. Again, we’ll get a day to day prognosis which will eventually be an IL stint. At this point I wouldn’t be a buyer of anyone of significance. Maybe Ian Kennedy. As mentioned above adding more star players to a growing list of injured players is not a good idea. Some might think “well, what if they get healthy?” If they current injured players do get healthy then we don’t need to trade for players that are going to be expensive prospect wise. A healthy Dodger team is a team more than capable of wining a World Series.
AF has already blown through the top salary penalty with the signing of Betts, Bauer, and others. I thought the Betts signing was great. He was a superior, athletic talent that would age well during his contract. For him to have hip problems already plus back issues is very discouraging. With Bauer, I wasn’t totally on board with the signing, but figured it would be for two years even though the salary numbers were outrageous. I enjoyed watching him pitchand compete. AF went against his core philosophy of not signing “dope fiend” contracts and both appear to have blown up in his face.
So Betts is going to play the next day, then day to day, then put on IL, and maybe out for the season. OK crack training staff which is it? Same diagnosis with Kershaw and Seager. Tomorrow, next week, next year? Who the heck knows? Now Bellinger and Kelly with a sore arm. I don’t understand in this day and age with all the advancements in training and treatment how so many injuries occur. Are the players overtraining? The comment above about baseball players shouldn’t be having hamstring issues was interesting. The reason why? Or did I miss that?
This week will certainly be very interesting and could change the the future of Dodger baseball in a huge way. Or it could be a nothing burger. Regardless of what happens let’s hope for some good health for the Dodgers for the rest of the season.
We need to know if any of these guys are expected to return to every day status. If not, what is the plan?
Sorry Badger, but you know that ain’t going to happen. It’s hard to come up with a plan with all the injuries almost every day. And, again, if there is/was a plan we weren’t going to told about it. It’s the new Dodger way to play baseball!
My son’s new granddaughter’s grandfather (on her Mom’s side of the family) decided he did not want to be called Grandpa, so the grandkids all call him Batman. 😉
Don’t shoot the messenger, but a doctor friend of mine (who happens to be a sports nut) believes the vaccines are partly to blame for the spate of injuries. I have no opinion.
I haven’t heard that before, but injuries are up all over the league. I did read that some think normal training activities were off for a year due to Covid and that is the reason. Your nut doctor needs some backup. I’d seek a second opinion.
but injuries are up all over the league.
So are vaccinations.
Of course, there is no connection… because we don’t want there to be a connection.
It’s my opinion COVID would go away like small pox, polio, TB, DBT, if the same percent of people were vaccinated. Based on my opinion, for me any rumor type comment that discourages vaccinations should not be made.
Batman? I thought you were going to say Badger. Pow! Bam! Wham! Zap! Boom!
Here is a trade idea: Farhan Zaidi for Friedman.
Would MLB allow the Dodgers to trade Bauer? If so, Bauer and Jansen to Phillies for PTBNL.
Hmm. Good trade.
But let’s not confuse correlation with causation.
If you’ve been vaccinated then you most likely won’t get COVID and have to be placed on the IL. If your not on the IL the more you play, and hence, the greater potential of sustaining an injury.. So in that sense getting vaccinated could be related to injury.
Even Ray Charles can see that!
AND Ray Charles could sing!
Yes he could. I got vaccinated and I was very much against it because I do not like to be forced to do anything. But I did my due diligence. I read a lot about the type they were going to use, Pfizer, and then I made what I felt was an informed decision based on my research. Not everyone will do that. MLB wants all of it’s players and front officer personnel vaccinated. Yet some who have received the vaccine have tested positive. One of my friends, who lives in this building was advised by her Dr. to not get the shot. Her present medical conditions require a lot of medications and he felt mixing them was not wise. So she has not gotten the shot.
My Dad was a huge Dodger fan – he was born in Brooklyn and went to his 1st game at Ebbets in 1938. He always complained about Sutton “he can’t finish what he started – he’s a 7 inning pitcher”!
The Dodgers have been without their starting SS, 2B and RF for a while. And 3/5 of their starting rotation.
The “depth” hasn’t been – Neuse, Reks, Peters, Raley look like AAAA players thus far.
Gonsolin isn’t right and it took them way too long to stretch Price out.
They’ve given way too many bullpen innings to the likes of Vesia, Cleavinger, Uceta and their ilk. No depth there either.
Giants without Longoria, Crawford and Belt beat the Dodgers with backups – something that the Dodgers have done to others for several years.
Dodgers getting virtually no production from Lux, Bellinger while other starters hurt means even more lineup holes.
Lots going wrong.
What can/will they do to fix it?
Love true Dodger fans, but Sutton has a lot more career complete games than most. 158. He also threw a lot of 9 inning scoreless outings and got no decision, which tells you how anemic those teams were.
I can’t believe the powers that be haven’t tried Ruiz at different positions while he is still in the minors. I mean you got a guy with good bat to ball skills who is currently blocked at the catcher position, meanwhile 2B on the big league team is currently a hole. It would be nice if Muncy would play 2B while Ruiz plays 1B until Seager gets back then Taylor can have 2B. Or Ruiz in the outfield instead of McKinney.
It just blows my mind that Ruiz is not on the big league team. Maybe he has always been thought of as a trade chip by the powers that be. Who knows.
By the way Ruiz hit 3 homers yesterday.
Ruiz is a catcher. Nothing else. He has to play there.
OTOH, Will Smith (while a great catcher) can play 3B and 2B.
I would do that tomorrow.
Ojalá promuevan a KB pronto al equipo grande y conserve números ofensivos actuales en AAA con una fuerte mentalidad y convicción, que sea consiente de aprovechar una oportunidad, así, con Smith en 3ra. o 1ra. tendremos más fuerza ofensiva y olvide ese cambio que proponen con los Cubs ( solo traiga a Kimbrell ), el resto se compondrá por si solo con un poco de tiempo. A y también convendría darle a una revisada a eso de la conexión de las vacunas vs Covid con las lesiones, o quizá además revisen las rutinas y/o procedimientos de entrenamiento de cada jugador y evitar tanta lesión muscular.
Ruiz will be on an MLB Roster by August 1.
I hope it is the Dodgers.
I do as well. Why he is not up here now is a mystery. Ruiz or Barnes? We need some offense right now. Will smith I hope has been taking ground balls at 2B. He can’t be any worse than the play we’ve gotten there so far this year. He should be a better hitter once he’s out from behind the plate. If not this year then next year for sure.
I’m trying to think like Andrew here and not getting anywhere with it. I don’t have enough information.
If he needs to replace 3 starting position players there’s no way he does it without trading. If we are trying to compete with others in the trade market one of our catchers will likely be needed. If Mookie and Seager are ok, we need one stick to go with one starter and someone who can close. If Kershaw ain’t right we need one stick, two starters and a late inning reliever.
We got issues. The deadline is days away now. We don’t have enough information to try to figure out exactly what we need. Well, that’s not entirely true. We need to win more than we lose in the next 5 games.
K-Bear at AAA – .309/.382/.644/1.026
Recks at AAA- .321/.418/.601/1.020
They aren’t going to move Smith off the position to accommodate Ruiz. We already have a short bench, so they aren’t going to carry 3 catchers.
If you think Nuese and Muncy are bad at second base, wait until you put a catcher there that hasn’t had any game time at the position.
Wouldn’t it make more sense to move Mookie to 2nd base so the running in the OF doesn’t bother his hip as much and let CT3 play outfield?
Why would they bring up Ruiz, right now in front of the deadline, and risk poor performance decreasing his trade value?
I think you only trade Ruiz for an impact player or front of the rotation starting pitcher. I’m not trading him for a closer unless he’s young, cheap, dirty and has a couple more years of control. Anyone fit that description?
Maybe you can roll the dice and trade Barnes in a package that lands you a rental like Jon Gray and pair Ruiz with Smith in the second half. Maybe Smith can be the guy that spells Turner at 3B?
I doubt that they want Smith to be learning another position right now. They would probably want him to focus on all the new pitchers in the rotation.
I have found that there is very little validity in comparing AAA stats.
There has been talk of moving Betts to 2nd base.
With all the turmoil going on with injuries the last thing I would do is think about trading a young healthy future like Ruiz. With Barnes probably passed his expiration date , I just don’t get it. I’d love to see Ruiz up getting some at bats. But those are just observations from a fan and I certainly don’t know all the particulars.
Let me be clear: The anti-vaxers and anti-maskers are idiots and so are the polar opposites. All are equally dangerous… in different ways.
The cloth masks currently used by most are about 100% useless. Not my opinion, shown in studies. And almost everyone does not mask properly either. Robert A Heinlein once said “show my the math, or it is not actually science”. Well, there is ZERO math that shows that masks help ANYTHING, and I could name a number of scenarios I have witnessed that would make wearing a mask worse than not wearing one too. And if I do get a vax it will be when Novavax is approved as it is an actual vax, not a genetics based drug treatment that is literally not a vaccine at all.
cheers
Dissent?! OMG! What is this country coming to?
Democracy? Not lately.
I think Mark just called porpoiseboy an idiot.
Not sure where you are getting your info Flipper, may I call you Flipper?, but I think most medical experts disagree with you.
I have not seen the lineup yet. Is CT3 scheduled to play 2B, SS, CF, and RF tonight?
Against a lefty, I am guessing that the defensive makeup will be:
P – Gonsolin (how far does he go tonight)
C – Smith
1B – Pujols
2B – Neuse
SS – CT3
3B – JT
LF – Beaty or McKinstry
CF – AJ
RF – McKinney
KJ got a night off, so per Doc, he will be the closer, if the team actually needs one. Since the decision was to keep Mookie on the current roster, and I have not seen a roster move for Belli, that will leave the bench to be Barnes and either Beaty or McKinstry. That is not a lot of respect for a team that just kicked the LAD relievers behind, and one that figures to be another bullpen game.
I was close. Apparently Raley was recalled, and he will play left, and Barnes will start over Smith. Raley recalled, Nunez back to OKC.
Scherzer scratched tonight due to mild discomfort in his right triceps.
Is Sherzer scratched tonight due mild discomfort or a pending trade???
Just wondering…
Tonight’s lineup is just depressing.
I agree. Second and third string. It’s also Jansen’s turn again.
I sometimes think Stratagest Doc does stuff just to try to confuse the opposition.
I think I will not watch tonight. As a matter of fact I know I won’t simply because I cannot get the broadcast. Rumors are flying all over the place, but little is being done. You know how thin the Dodgers are right now just by seeing they are running 2 LH bats out there against a lefty, and neither hits lefty’s very well. Raley over Reks. Pick your poison. I think I would have recalled Peters instead. He is the superior defender and a RH bat, He has also cut down his strikeouts lately and had a hot bat the last week or so.
Well it would be nice to get some good umpiring tonight. Is that too much to ask from the baseball gods? You know honestly it’s gotten so bad lately that I really considered quitting watching all together. How’d you like to be a rookie and come up and be subjected to that kind of umpiring?
For years I thought the umpires were pretty good. And you could respect most of them. And back in the day they had a lot of colorful names. But I also noticed a trend towards becoming more confrontational as the years went on. Augie Donatelli, who spent 23 years in the NL was one of those I respected most. He kept the game moving, and was a very good balls and strikes guy. He would listen to the arguments, and only if the manager or player started using inappropriate language would he toss the guy. Most were like that. Guys like Angel Hernandez, Hickox, who was at home the other night, and several other current umpires are just way too confrontational, and will run players for seemingly minor spats. Replay has kept some calls from becoming riots. And I think the automated strike zone will reduce the amount of chirping from the bench’s. But my biggest hope for it is that it proves to players that they had better be ready to cover both sides of the plate, and standing there with the bat on your shoulder is not going to get you many hits. I was always taught to protect the plate, and if it is close, unload on it. Smith last night swung at two pitches way out of the zone. He got himself out, not Bard.
Miami beat SD 3-2, so they can pick up a game on the Pads.
When was the last time the Dodgers rolled out such a weak lineup?
Last night was close
Old friend Joc Pederson went 4-6 tonight with a HR and 4 RBI’s. He is hitting .234.
White was recalled and Sherfy placed on the 10 day IL with elbow inflammation.
OK. I’m convinced. Let’s bring up Ruiz and put Barnes at second. Barnes shouldn’t mind too much, since he’ll get more playing time.
Maybe our starters can learn to pitch complete games?
That’s funny. Our staff would have to average 10 pitches an inning to complete 9.
Very refreshing. Homeplate umpire tonight doing a very good job. Not sure but I think it’s Carapaza
It is.
You spoke too soon.
Maybe I spoke too soon. He’s already missed four in this inning. You beat me to it Mark
😉
What about the Catman? The Catman do!
Humorous, but not belly splitting.
I’ll give him a B.
You are more generous than I D Minus.
I’m an easy grader. I expect it to be returned.
Nice job by Gonsolin. Too bad this offense is not very productive. Taylor had a legitimate gripe. Bellinger worked out in the outfield and at 1st base today. Seager is heading to Arizona to get some reps on Monday. Thinking with Belli is that he does not have to chase balls so much at 1st. Betts received a cortisone shot, and the plan is for him to play on Tuesday when they open the series in SF. Muncy will be back then. Max named his daughter Sophie. US won it’s first medal in Tokyo with a win in the 400 M individual medley. Pirates up 6-1 in SF. Thank you Pirates.
Our crummy #4 pitcher and actually our #6 starter has had his era ballon to .238! What a loser! Who’s ready for another Kenley close?
How can his ERA balloon when he gave up no runs??? I do not think it works that way. How about that Barnes kid???
Hopefully, the Dodgers know something we don’t.
Kenley we love you! We don’t need no stinking Kimbrel!
Never doubted it. Why? Doc’s a genius. He’s got History working for him!
Well I’ll be damned
I think we all will.
Well, that offense pretty much did what we suspected. Who had it 1-0 with Barnes going deep?
Hold on Pirates.
You’re probably right on that Bear, back to the game, what a difference a day makes 24 little hours
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHhrZgojY1Q
Just a matter of time…
Check the statistics of the last 30 days of the current starting pitchers: Buehler, Urias, Price and Gonsolin, you will be surprised:
https://www.mlb.com/dodgers/stats/pitching?timeframe=-29
When I saw our lineup from 5-9 I expected not many runs would be scored for the Dodgers. That held to form.
But with Catman I also did not expect we would get a shutout today. And KJ getting a tough save with a one run lead only.
Good win. Tony had and uptick in velo , working at 95-96 regularly and this immediately paid dividends.
Go Dodgers!!!!!!!!!!